March 1, 2024 Lunch - East Ocean. Dinner - Oysters and Grilled Steak and asparagus with baked Potato wedges

March 1, 2024 Lunch - East Ocean. Dinner - Oysters and Grilled Steak and asparagus with baked Potato wedges 

I ate a chocolate crepe with a latte machiatta at 8:30 and watched the market take off yet again. It was another up day led by Nvda up over $31.00 and Meta up over $12.00 and only dampened by a pull back by Apple of over a dollar.

At 11:30 I drove to East Ocean to meet Robert for lunch.  He had already ordered and started eating because I was 15 minutes late. As a litigator Robert is always punctual.  We always share a vegetarian dish, deep fried tofu with Mixed Vegetables (onion, bok Choy, broccoli, mushroom, water chestnut, carrot, baby corn, snow peas, celery, and zucchini).

At 1:00 I drove to Walgreens to pick up my prescriptions for post surgery.

Then I drove home and checked the workers and then drove to my 2:00 with Jim Strozier.

I had a great meeting with Jim, who brought me up to date on all the recent developments on the west side town.

I then went home and at 4:30 Suzette arrived and we drove to Whole Foods to pick up the four dozen oysters we had ordered.  We looked around and only saw one item we felt like buying, a small wedge of Papillon French Rouquefort cheese.

We drove home and Suzette put the oyster filled containers on trays.

Suzette then made cocktail sauce with catsup, lemon juice, and horseradish.

I fetched two bottles of Sauvignon Blanc from the garage fridge. One was a Kirkland Russian River and the other French Palantir.

I wiped off the table in the dining room and Suzette lay our French Provencal table cloth.

I then sliced five russet potatoes into six wedges each that Suzette drizzled with olive oil and salt and baked around 350 degrees for 45 minutes.

Aaron,, Monica, and Alexi arrived at 6:30 with NY Strip steaks and two bottles of wine, a Vieuve  Cliquoet champagne and a chateau Tetre Margaux, plus a lovely bouquet of flowers to thank me for sponsoring their visa application.

Suzette put the bouquet in a vase on the dining room table so we could enjoy it during dinner.

We first gathered around the round table in the TV room and ate oysters and sipped the Russian River Sauvignon Blanc that was surprisingly citrusy.  Not enough good things can be said about Whole Foods $1.00 Friday oyster special. It is well worth buying an individual Prime membership in Amazon, simply for that benefit.

Then we prepared asparagus for grilling by shaking yhem in a freezer bag in olive oil, salt and pepper and the wrapped in aluminum foil and then grilled.

Aaron helped cook the steaks and I poured the 2019 Calstar River’s Edge Pinot Noir. This was a luscious wine with a long soft fruity finish. I will buy more bottles of it.

Soon the steaks and asparagus and potatoes were ready we ate in the dining room and discovered that Aaron and Monica were married in October, so we celebrated that.

Suzette made Alexi a hot chocolate with the new Coffee machine that thrilled Alexi.

Everything was delicious, the charred steak and large asparagus were were tender and delicious and everyone liked the crisp chewy baked potato wedges that were best eaten with one’s fingers like fried potato but firmer.

After dinner we decided to have a cheese course to feature the Rouquefort cheese.  Suzette made a plate with three cheeses, the , a semi hard cheese, and the last bit of Boursin cheese spread flavored with garlic and several rounds of toasted baguette.

The Rouquefort is the wedge with the knife in it

We all went to the basement wine cellar to try to find a Zinfandel but instead discovered a 2014 Lonesome Rock Ranch Pinot Noir.

Here are the tasting notes published by De Ponte:

2018 Lonesome Rock Ranch Pinot Noir

<< Back to list

Regular Price: $65.00
Club Price: $55.00

1 Add To Cart

Floral notes abound while mingling with distinct aromas of earth driven minerality and dark, brambly fruit – only becoming more complex as it lingers in the glass. Hints of black plum and blackberry play well with the notes of sandalwood and toffee on the palate.

The Rouquefort cheese was delicious creamy and laced with blue veins of blue that Monica said was a bacteria related to penicillin.

The cheese board with the amazing Pinot Noir wine was the high point of the meal after the fresh oysters.

I poured the last of the Maison Serene cognac for a sip to finish the meal and we said good night at 10:00 at the end of a lovely evening.

Bon Appetit